Looking at the Reality of “Jishi” (Suicide)

Circumstances behind this theme
In September 2010, the Committee for Social Awareness of Caritas Japanchanged its name from the Social Welfare Committee in order to indicate more clearly
the aims and sphere of our activities. This Committee focuses on the issue of poor people
and those who are placed in vulnerable positions and faced with threat of living without
human dignity, feels compassion for their suffering and pain, and by doing so, sends
messages based on the Gospel inside and outside of the Church.
In reality, the Committee for Social Awareness has been coping with theissues beyond the boundary of “social welfare activities” up to now. This committee has
been addressing the issue of violence and abuse since 2005, and taking up “suicide andisolation” as a theme since summer of 2007. Committee members working in various
fields came up with the common problem, “isolation”, after considering together thesuffering and pain existing in current society. The most tragic conclusion of isolation isclearly “suicide”. Amid such discussion we decided to find out the reality of suicide inJapan. In November 2008 the open study session on “suicide and isolation” was held inTokyo.

The word “jishi” (suicide)
We use the Japanese word “jishi” instead of “jisatsu”, both of which meansuicide in English. Because the word “jisatsu” has a nuance of blaming suicide victims,
we thought the more neutral word “jishi” was more appropriate. We have gradually
figured out that suicide victims are not “those who chose to die by themselves”, butrather “those who are driven into a corner having no choice but to die”. Of course, theword “jisatsu” is also currently used with the same meaning. However, the word “jishi”
is commonly used so that prejudice against suicide is reduced and persons connectedwith suicide can easily talk about this issue. Especially, the word “jishi-izoku” (bereaved
family of suicides) is commonly used, concerning the feelings of bereaved families.
Therefore, we use the words “jishi”, “jisisha”(suicide victim), “jisi-izoku” as much as
possible, while we use the word “jisatsu” for technical administrative or legal terms,
such as “jisatu-taisaku”(anti-suicide measures) and “jisatu-yobo”(suicide prevention).

Suicide is not a personal problem.
The lecturer of the open study session was Mr. Yasuyuki Shimizu, chairman ofLife Link; Center for Suicide Prevention Measures, a nonprofit organization. We
learned a lot from his speech based on White Paper on Suicide 2008 published by LifeLink.
 Over 30,000 persons committed suicide every year in Japan since the end of 1988
when many companies went bankrupt due to the blast of bubble economy. The
main reasons for suicide of middle-aged men were economic problems.
 Depressed patients commit suicide in many cases, but there are other various
factors causing suicides. In other words, the depression measures alone cannot
fully respond to all aspects of the suicide issue.
 When it comes to suicides, each region has its own various characteristics of age,gender and vocation. Therefore suicide measures according to the respective
region’s needs are necessary.
At the end of his lecture, Mr. Shimizu also pointed out that there was a
possibility that the number of suicides increases due to the economic situation after theLehman Shock at the end of 2008.
In January 2009, when the media broadly reported “firing of temporaryworkers” and “New Year’s villages for temporary workers”, the Episcopal Commission
for Social Issues of the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of Japan announced “Urgent
Appeal for Protection of Human Lives 2009” in order to prevent as much as possible
dying on the streets and suicides. Along with this appeal, Caritas Japan called for
Emergency Contribution to Save Lives, because the reality, in which tens of thousandsof people lost both jobs and housing and a lot of people even lost their lives, was equal toa serious disaster, or an emergency humanitarian crisis. The collected contributions
amounted to approximately 30 million yen as of the summer of the same year. The
contributions were used for activities to support homeless people, suicide prevention
measures, activities to support children of closed foreigners’ schools, and aid to those
who are applying for refugee status without livelihood assistance.
The government’s suicide measures have also become substantial. The Basic
Act on Suicide Prevention was enacted in 2006, and the Comprehensive Suicide
Measures Act was approved at a Cabinet meeting in 2007. What was clearly recognizedin these acts was that suicide was not merely a personal matter, and that society wasresponsible for individuals’ suicides because there were various social factors behindsuicides. Various local governments also started to take suicide measures afterward.

Awareness as the Catholic faithfulThinking of the issue of suicide, we came up with a question, “What is ourawareness as the Catholic faithful about suicide?” In Christianity, it is commonly
taught as follows.
― We must respect life given by God.

We must not terminate our own lives. Such act

is a mortal sin against God. ―Such teaching was certainly meant to respect lives and eliminate suicides.
However, because only the viewpoint of “being a sin” was emphasized, attemptedsuicides and bereaved families of suicides could be driven into a corner, or talking aboutsuicides could become taboo as a result. Based on such reflection, this Committee
conducted the Survey on Concerns about Suicide in the Catholic Church in summer ofthe year 2009.
The survey includes a question, “What do you think of suicide?” We werebewildered at questioning if suicide was a sin or not. It is not a simple question easily
answered by saying “Yes” or “No”. There is no exact answer either. However, byaddressing this question, we tried to ask once again the awareness of the Catholic
faithful about suicide. There were various answers. Even if suicide were defined as a sin,
the number of suicides would not decrease, and the suffering of persons connected withsuicides or bereaved families would increase. Conversely, Even if suicide were notdefined as a sin, the issue of suicides would not be solved, and the suffering of persons
concerned or bereaved families would not be eased.
What was surprising about the survey’s result was that about a half ofrespondents answered that they have a connection to suicide. Many people filled their
response sheets with their experiences and their thoughts. And we felt all the more thedepth of suicide experiences.

Changes in the times and the teaching of the Church― All men are enlivened by God. Therefore, every life in this world should be respected.
However, bodily death is not the end of everything. People come to God through death.
Living eternal life of God is the final goal of the human journey. ―This is the core of Christian faith. The Christian viewpoint on suicide is basedon this belief. Humans must not desecrate their own lives or lives of others in any case.
Properly speaking, suicide should not have existed. It is said that in Christian nations
there were fewer suicides throughout history. If some people in Japanese society
beautify death, or neglect lives, we must say clearly “No” to them.
On the other hand, the reality surrounding suicide has become very severe. It
has become increasingly clear that most suicides were committed not by free will, but
because the persons concerned were driven into a corner having no choice but to die.
Under such circumstances, the rules and teachings of the Church have changed.
According to the traditional teaching of the Church, suicide is a sin because peoplecommit suicide as the result of rejecting Christian faith and choosing to die by their freewill. However, it is recognized today that suicides are not a matter of personal ethicaldecision but a social issue as well as a mental problem which cannot be assumed bypersonal responsibility. The Church declared that those who committed suicides also
have hope for the eternal salvation and the Church prays for persons who have taken
their own lives (1).
“Reverence for Life”, a Message for the Twenty-First Century from theCatholic Bishops of Japan stated as follow:“62.

God is just, but also merciful. We wonder about people whose life in this world

has ended. “How does God judge them?” “How does God see it?” The answer is a mysterythat transcends human understanding. We should leave judgment to God who knows all.
When we consider the complicated reality of our world and human weakness, we believethat God’s mercy is richly poured out upon those who have committed suicide.
Sadly, the Church’s position that “suicide is a mortal sin against God who is
the Lord of life” has been cold, judgmental and discriminatory. We admit that andrepent.
Therefore, we appeal to each and every member of the Church to offer funeral
Masses and prayers for the deceased who need God’s mercy and forgiveness and for the
bereaved who need comfort and encouragement.”

When this message was announced, suicide was regarded as a personal issue,
but this message was valuable because it appealed to people to feel the suffering ofpersons connected with suicide and treat suffering people with compassion. Has thisappeal reached every corner of the Catholic Church? According to the responses to oursurvey, it seems that the prejudice and discrimination against suicides and their
bereaved families have not vanished in reality.

With compassion to the suffering of persons connected with suicide
Under such circumstances, we, the Committee for Social Awareness of Caritas
Japan would like to appeal the following points to the Catholic Church as a whole.
(1) Let us pay attention to this issue disregarding the taboo, and talk about it in theChurch. Let us also offer prayers and funeral Masses for those who committed
suicide so that we can share the suffering of bereaved families.
(2) The Church should become a place where people, who are driven into a corner todie, can talk about their troubles and suffering. Let us listen to the voices of thosepeople. It is also important to provide places where persons who want to die cantalk with and support each other.
(3) If possible, let us establish a center where people can talk about their mental orlivelihood problems, or at least introduce various counseling centers (2).
(4) Let us keep on sending the message, “Even so, we want you to live”.
(5) The Church should offer places where bereaved families can share their sufferingand sorrow together. If the deceased and their families are Catholic, they might besuffering a sense of guilt and prejudice. Therefore, gatherings of bereaved families
are necessary in the Catholic Church.

According to the Christian faith, life given by God is respected. Therefore, weare deeply concerned about the reality that over 30 thousand people have taken theirown lives every year for 12 consecutive years in Japan. And we cannot be indifferent tothis issue, either.
The fundamental attitude of the Church to the modern world is stated in thebeginning of the Pastoral Constitution on the Church in the Modern World, Gaudium etspes of the Second Vatican Council (1965) as follows:“The joys and the hopes, the griefs and the anxieties of the men of this age, especiallythose who are poor or in any way afflicted, these are the joys and hopes, the griefs andanxieties of the followers of Christ. Indeed, nothing genuinely human fails to raise anecho in their hearts.”

Having this attitude as a basis, we cannot simply say “Suicide is a sin”. It is
commonly said that when someone says “I want to die”, the person is actually saying “Iwant to live” deep down inside. Has the Church become the place to hear such voices? If
it is thought that the Church only offers sermons such as “Do not die” and “You mustlive” in response to inquiries, who will consult the Church? Isn’t it necessary all themore that we accept as it is the suffering to the extent that they want to die?
The Church is a gathering of people who believe that all men are precious
sons of God and thus brothers and sisters to each other, and who seek to live together
with mutual support. Many specialists who have been dealing with the issue of suicide
point out that there is always the problem of isolation behind suicides. The fundamental
reason for committing suicide is a condition in which one believes that he or she is notconnected to anyone, and circumstances which force them to believe so. We believe thatthe important challenges of the Church today are to fight against isolation, and tocreate communities in which people are connected and support each other under God.
The Committee for Social Awareness of Caritas Japan is going to make thisappeal to people both inside and outside of the Church, and support any initiatives onsuicide in every diocese or region as much as possible.

Committee for Social Awareness, Caritas Japan

References(1) Catechism of the Catholic Church (1992) states as follows, although it defines
suicides as evil:“Grave psychological disturbances, anguish, or grave fear of hardship, suffering, ortorture can diminish the responsibility of the one committing suicide.
We should not despair of the eternal salvation of persons who have taken their own
lives. By ways known to him alone, God can provide the opportunity for salutary
repentance. The Church prays for persons who have taken their own lives”(2282~2283).

Formerly the Code of Canon Law included the canons which prohibited celebrating
funeral Masses for those who committed suicide and burying them in cemeteries of
the Church (Can. 1240 [1] 3, Can.2350, 1917). However, in the current Code of Canon
Law (1983) these canons were eliminated with emphasis on pastoral responses.
(2) Refer to the website of “Counseling Centers to support lives” of the Suicide
Prevention Center in the National Center of Neurology and Psychiatry (NCNP):
http://ikiru.ncnp.go.jp/ikiru-hp/ikirusasaeru/idex.html